Consider the following statements regarding the Classical languages in...
Recently, the West Bengal Chief Minister urged central government to include ‘Bengali’ as a classical language.
- Criteria evolved by Government of India to determine declaration of a language as a Classical language is as under:-
- High antiquity of its early texts/recorded history over a period of 1500-2000 years;
- A body of ancient literature/texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers;
- The literary tradition be original and not borrowed from another speech community;
- The classical language and literature being distinct from modern, there may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.
- Currently, six languages enjoy the ‘Classical’ status: Tamil (declared in 2004), Sanskrit (2005), Kannada (2008), Telugu (2008), Malayalam (2013), and Odia (2014).
- The benefits it provides once a language is notified as a Classical language:
- Two major annual international awards for scholars of eminence in classical Indian languages.
- A Centre of Excellence for studies in Classical Languages is set up.
- The University Grants Commission is requested to create, to start with at least in the Central Universities, a certain number of Professional Chairs for the Classical Languages so declared.”
Hence only statement 1 is correct.
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Consider the following statements regarding the Classical languages in...
Explanation:
1. Criteria for Classical Language:
- A language is considered classical if it has early texts or recorded history spanning over a period of 1500-2000 years. This criterion helps recognize languages with a rich cultural and historical heritage.
- Based on this criterion, languages like Sanskrit, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, Odia, Gujarati, and Marathi have been designated as classical languages in India.
2. Current Classical Languages in India:
- As per the second statement, there are currently eight languages in India that hold the status of a classical language. These languages have met the criteria of having a long history and rich literary tradition.
- Therefore, statement 2 is correct in stating that there are eight classical languages in India.
Therefore, the correct answer is option 'A' - 1 only. The statement mentioning the criteria for classical languages is accurate, while the specific number of classical languages mentioned in the second statement is also correct.
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